Stand in public with a sign saying ‘Free Hugs’. Try and get at least five hugs.

“As we walked toward the city center of Brunswick, I started looking at the people passing by and tried to guess whether or not they would accept a hug. To be honest, I was pretty nervous, because the whole thing was so unpredictable. [...] Our initial anxiety disappeared quickly. It turned out to be quite fun to watch people’s reactions: Some kept a straight face, some looked surprised or narrowed their eyebrows, but the overwhelming majority smiled and talked about us when they realized what we were doing. Then, after about five minutes, the first two people came running into our arms, tourists from an English-speaking country. In retrospect, these were some of the most heartfelt hugs of the day. “How long can I hug you?” one of them asked. My friend chuckled. “As long as you want!”

“Most of the time, we wouldn’t offer our hugs very aggressively, and let the people come to us instead. We watched many groups hesitating whether or not to approach us. Often, one member would try to convince the others to come with them. Soon, when we spotted this behaviour, we tried to invite them in by opening our arms and waving and nodding. Some groups literally changed direction four or five times (toward us, away from us, toward us), before finally deciding on whether they would do it.”

“On another occasion, a series of hugs left me feeling somewhat physically battered, even if that had never been the intention. First, a rather large man gave me a very enthusiastic hug, holding me tight while shaking me vigorously from side to side. That was followed by a number of shoulders coming roughly and painfully into contact with my Adam’s apple. This was, again, a new experience for me. I allowed myself to open to the feeling of being physically vulnerable in an unpredictable environment. I was aware of not wanting to put myself out there like this anymore and wanting to protect myself.”